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Google tells Iranians: Change your Gmail password

And check for forwarding to the Revolutionary Guards

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Google has issued a blanket instruction advising Iranian users to check if their Gmail accounts might have been hacked as well as to change their passwords.

The move follows the compromise of Dutch SSL certificate authority DigiNotar. Hackers created fake SSL certificate credentials for Google.com and many other domains. These fake Google credentials were used to run man-in-the-middle attacks against Gmail users in Iran, according to an examination of authentication look-ups logs at DigiNotar and other evidence.

Parties who obtained compromised access to Gmail accounts as a result of the hack might have added instructions to forward all received messages to another account. For that reason, Google is asking its Iranian users not only to change their passwords but to review their account settings for any signs of unauthorised changes, including alterations to account recovery options. Other Google apps, such as Google Docs, also need reviewing, as net security firm Sophos notes. Its advice on how to guard against Gmail account hacking more generally can be found here. ®